The National Traveller Pride Week Concert took place in Dublin on Friday 23rd May in a fantastic celebration of Traveller traditions and emerging Traveller talent.
The theme for Traveller Pride Week 2025 is ‘Empowering the Future: The Next Generation of Irish Travellers’ and this was reflected in the young talent that performed at the concert.
Rosie McCarthy from Macroom, Cork, is a young Traveller woman with a fantastic voice and sings in a traditional style.
The young Tom and Felix Doran brothers continue their proud family tradition of music making. They are the great, grand nephews of the famous pipers Felix and Johnny Doran.
The line up is headlined by master piper and fiddler player Mickey Dunne of the renowned musical Dunne family, his daughter; fiddle player and singer Niamh Dunne of Beoga fame and her husband Seán Óg Graham who recently joined the Bothy Band for their reunion tour. Stephen Dunne, son of the famous Pecker Dunne, also performed playing the banjo as his father did before him.
Piper Johnny Purcell, grandson of the famous Johnny Doran travelled over from London especially for the occasion and William Dundon also performed on accordion and vocals.
Other highlights include singer/songwriter Katie Theasby, guitarist and singer Marty Barry (grandson of Margaret Barry) and Kathleen Keenan from Co. Clare.
The concert is a national event that leads into a week of local Traveller Pride Week events that are taking place in Dublin and around the country.
These events celebrate Traveller culture and identity and Travellers’ unique contribution to Irish society and include the recreation of traditional Traveller camps with the barrel top wagon; tinsmithing demonstrations; singing; storytelling; talent competitions; photography and family fun days out.
Traveller Pride Week is an important means of promoting Traveller visibility, advocacy, empowerment and cultural preservation and while also combatting the prejudice and discrimination that Travellers face.
Traveller Pride Week is organised by the national Traveller organisations and supported by the Department of Children, Disability and Equality and started off as Traveller Focus Week in 1998.